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New Juaben South celebrates farmers

The New Juaben South Municipal Assembly on this year’s 36th National Farmers Day celebration awarded 15 farmers for their efforts and impact towards food sustainability in the municipality.

Date Created : 11/6/2020 12:00:00 AM : Story Author : Collins Aikins Akuffo/Ghanadistricts.com

The celebration was organized by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in collaboration with the Municipal Assembly under the theme “Empowering Agribusiness Development Under Covid-19: Opportunities And Challenges”.

This comes in the wake of the government’s commitment to support and strengthen small-scale Agribusiness through the value chain of the agriculture sector.

The farmers displayed their farm produce in respective of the occasion which attracted people from all walks of life to be encouraged in farming.

Some dignitaries present were the Municipal Chief Executive Hon. Isaac Appaw-Gyasi, Municipal Director of Agriculture, Mr. Kofi Amoako Tweneboah, Gyaasehene, Nana Twumasi Dankwah, Nana Anima Ampofowaa the Santanhemaa all in the New Juaben Traditional Area.

The occasion chaired by the Gyaasehene, Nana Twumasi Dankwah, plaudits the gallant farmers and stressed how their work has been through the COVID-19 pandemic. He encouraged the farmers to keep supporting the country.

The Municipal Director of Agriculture, Mr. Kofi Amoako Tweneboah, reiterated the sentiments made by the chairman of the ceremony on how imperative the foodstuff produced by farmers was to the survival of Ghanaians during the COVID-19 lockdown period.

He mentioned that the government will soon initiate new laws and regulations that will ensure safe farming and also boost food security in the country. He expounded on the government’s commitment to diversify and modernize agribusiness and urged all farmers to be innovative in their farm practices so as to improve their living conditions in life.

For his part, the Municipal Chief Executive, hon. Isaac Appaw-Gyasi touched on the good works done by the government for putting in place several flagship programmes to ameliorate the low agriculture growth bequeathed on the citizens.

He stated that in spite of all the flagship programmes being implemented by the current government, Agriculture is one of the lead sectors which has received the highest investment.

He was quick to add that the budget provided by the government to support small businesses in the form of soft loans to Hoteliers, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in the form of Adom and Anidaso loans through the National Board for Small Scale Industries is receiving the needed attention and it is augmenting the losses made during the peak of COVID 19 pandemic.

In the New Juaben South Municipality, a total of One million four hundred and eighty-four thousand, six hundred ninety Ghana Cedis (GH¢1,484,690.00) has been disbursed to over One thousand two hundred and three (1,203) businesses under the Microcredit schemes while 90 million has been earmarked for disbursement to the second category of businesses under Nkosuo Loan. He stated that this has empowered many small scale enterprises to produce goods which hitherto would have experienced shortfalls due to COVID-19.

Following the good initiative by the government to make lives meaningful to the ordinary Ghanaian, the government since the introduction of the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme, has increased the supply of agricultural inputs to make it cheap and accessible for farmers. In view of these, the distribution of three thousand six hundred and eighty-seven (3,687) bags of fertilizer for both NPK and Urea in 2019 increased to 11,113 bags in 2020 representing a three hundred percent (300%) increase over 2019.

The total number of beneficiary farmers also increased from One thousand two hundred ninety-eighty (1,298) which made up of (938 males and 360 females) in 2019 to two thousand three hundred and fifty-six (2,356) which also made up of (1,921 males and 435 females) farmers in 2020 comparatively.

This represents One hundred and eighty percent (180%) increase in 2020. Again, Mr. Appaw-Gyasi mentioned that the total number of farmers reached through the use of electronic platforms also increased tremendously from two thousand eight hundred and ninety-six (2,896) to six thousand two hundred and ten (6,210) in 2020 with two hundred percent (200%).

He further charged the awardees to do away with complacency and invest more in their farm activities so as to produce more foodstuffs to feed the country.

Out of 15 award winners, the overall Municipal Best Farmer went to a 46-year-old madam Vida Adeweh of Pantoase, a suburb in Koforidua New Juaben South Municipal Assembly. She took home new style wax prints, Rubber bowls, Radio sets, Knapsack sprayers, Wellington boots, Cutlasses, Bottles of weedicide, One Tricycle, certificates, and cutlasses.